Stevenson’s left hand: his main hope against Schofield?

Leaked footage of Shakur Stevenson training in camp for his fight against Floyd Schofield in 46 days showed he is still not using his surgically repaired right hand in training for his WBC lightweight title defense on February 22. He prefers his right hand, does not want to use it and concentrates on his left.

Unfortunately, that strategy won’t work for Stevenson against Schofield. He will be in attack mode from the first round, and if Schofield runs like he did against Edwin De Los Santos, he will chase him like a hungry cat.

Training footage reveals weakness

The southpaw Stevenson (22-0, 10 KOs) is still reduced to using only his left hand, as was the situation in his narrow victory over Edwin De Los Santos in 2023. In the video, Stevenson barely uses his right hand, which shows he doesn’t trust it. It’s too cute.

If Shakur’s right hand falls apart against Schofield, there is no way he can stand his ground and fight this type of fighter. He won’t be able to contain Floyd with only one hand working for him.

For this fight against the young Schofield (18-0, 12 KOs), 22, it is vital that Shakur, 27, has more than just his left hand working for him. This guy can and will hit you relentlessly. This is how Floyd fights; He and his father know that Shakur is fragile.

“I think if Floyd Schofield can fight high, use a lot of pressure and that jab (he will beat Shakur). The jab is the key to Shakur’s style,” Oscar De La Hoya told Fight Hub TV.

Added Shakur Volume

Stevenson looks like a middleweight now, having moved up in weight since his last fight against Artem Harutyunyan six months ago on July 6. He will have to support that weight because he looks like a 160 pound fat man. Stevenson does not look healthy nor does he look anything like a professional athlete.

I don’t know what he’s been eating to get so big, but he needs to stop raiding the cookie jar. He looks like an old drummer from a rock band from the 60s.

That weight is going to have to go away. Shakur will step away from the kitchen table and watch his diet if he doesn’t want to get stuck and have to exhaust himself to the bone the week of the fight. He doesn’t have a fighter’s physique anyway, but he’s made it worse by exploding with the six months he’s been out of the ring.

In contrast, Schofield looks sculpted and already in fighting shape. That’s youth, obviously, but it’s also hard work. You don’t sit around eating and looking at your belts or posting on Twitter 24/7.